Summary:
In which the Syndicate's leaders have the audacity to approach Tommy bearing a negotiation.
no trigger warnings for this chapter, enjoy reading :))
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(Hi again Daniel 🤭)
"Nope, no and absolutely not!" Tommy laughed in exasperation at the sheer audacity of the supervillain. Anger blinded his vision as he hurled the car keys back at Chorus.
Chorus fumbled, dropping the keys with a pang of shock, "Okay, just-"
"No," Tommy interrupted him, voice laced with adamacy, "You have a lot of nerve to even consider approaching me after the other night."
"Please, just let us explain," The villain beseeched as he slid off the bonnet of the car, crouching down to fish the keys from a puddle which was pooling by his feet.
He shook his head in return, "I don't have to do anything you say!" Tommy turned on his heel, ignoring Chorus' pleading. These villains had cost him so much already and he wasn't about to risk his freedom to roam the streets by getting involved again.
Suddenly, a blurred mass swathed in shades of black and dark green dropped from the sky. The headlights of the stolen car lit up Zephyrus as his wings unfurled, catching himself from the fall. Tommy watched in a mixture of twisted awe and horror as Zephyrus' wings spread out the length of the alleyway, utilising his wingspan to block the exit of the alleyway.
"I told you we should've used brute force," A voice drawled loudly from above the alleyway. Tommy's eyes flitted up to the distinct silhouette looming over him from the roof. Stray beams of moonlight and streetlights cast uneasy shadows of the figure across the bricked walls of the alley. He didn't need a second glance to know that this was The Blade, completing the infamous trio.
(NOOO THE POLICEY WEESY WANT ENOUGH ALREADY😭)
"It's never too late?" Zephyrus suggested, a sly smile spreading upon his lips as he looked down upon Tommy. It was that same smile Zephyrus had on his face as he stole the lives of the police officers. Tommy didn't dare think about that night anymore.
The Blade glided across the top of the roof and agilely slid down the drain pipe which creaked and groan under the villains' weight. With The Blade now on the ground, Tommy's stomach lurched and he felt bile rise in his throat as his mind conjured up graphic scenarios; what did these villains want with him now? They already stained his criminal record and sent him five thousand pounds deeper into debt and now they were here to demand more of him. Despite the nerves which immediately kicked in, he turned around to face the villains and puffed up his chest, "You all better be here to apologise," Tommy turned to Zephyrus, glaring as he feigned confidence, though he was certain the villains could see through his demeanour, "And you better be here to give me the money you scammed me."
"I can do you one better," Zephyrus began, "We have an offer-"
"Nope!" Tommy interrupted, thrashing his hands wildly around in anger, "I'm not interested in any of your stupid offers anymore. Every time I get involved in your guys' crimes something always goes wrong. I am going back to my own, petty crimes where I never got caught and actually got to keep the money I make." It was true for the last two times he was involved with the Syndicate, Tommy had either been ripped off or had the revenue he was promised stolen; the police said that the cash Chorus gave him beforehand was 'evidence' for the case meaning he couldn't reclaim the money as his own.
Tommy refused to make the same mistake again.
"Just hear us out." Chorus tried, flailing his hands frantically and desperately as he refrained from lacing his voice with his magical persuasion.
"No. You ditched me!" Tommy spat, pointing an accusing finger at The Blade and Chorus, "You were more than content to hand me over to the cops just to save yourselves."
"Yeah, but we also busted you out of jail." The Blade deadpanned.
The teen shook his head frantically and, voice laced with adamacy, he said, "No, that was Quackity-" The three supervillains exchanged masked looks with perhaps an air of smugness that caused Tommy's words to swiftly die out in his throat.
"Listen, your usual solicitor is a great guy, I'm sure," Zephyrus explained whilst Tommy audibly groaned, burying his head in his hands as realisation struck him like a bolt of lightning, "But we needed someone reliable who we knew would be able to get you out of there for certain."
"That's where Quackity came in," Chorus nadded.
"We knew the evidence piled against you was weak." The Blade began to explicate, "There wasn't enough evidence to actually build the foundations of a solid case and press charges against you. But if it was one of us villains who were caught.." The Blade trailed off, letting Tommy fill in the gaps.
Tommy understood. If it were one of the supervillains in Tommy's place when he was captured by the authorities, they would've been arrested without hesitation. The court trial would be a breeze; any of the villains would instantly be found guilty and sent to rot in the dingiest cell of Pandora's Box, the highest security prison Essempi has to offer. But Tommy knew that in this hypothetical scenario, it wouldn't just stop there: if a villain was caught, they would be unmasked and from there it would be a case of simply tracking down each member of the Syndicate through the villains' civilian associates. Or, even worse, the heroes would pry the identities directly from the prisoner's mouth through torture and similar means.
"You still could've filled me in on the plan," Tommy eventually grumbled. He hated to admit it, but he would've done the same thing should he be in the villain's position, "If I knew you guys were so set on breaking me out, I wouldn't have used my superpower in front of the authorities. You know I have to pay a bloody fine now!?"
"You dug that hole for yourself." The Blade shrugged bleakly.
Tommy glanced around, "So.. what do you want from me now? I doubt you're keeping me here simply to justify your actions."
Chorus held out his hand, offering the car keys to Tommy once more, "Just hear us out, okay?" It sounded like a question, but Tommy knew he didn't have much of a choice; there was a reason Zephyrus still had his wings spanned out across the exit of the alleyway. They were forcing his hand.
Repressing a scoff, Tommy snatched the keys from Chorus, "Let's just get this over with."
He trudged across the alleyway to the black car with tinted black windows - Tommy supposed it was so the stray, passing onlooker wouldn't be able to gaze in and intrude on this meeting of sorts. Tommy slid into the vehicle, dripping rainwater upon the leather seats of the car. The villains followed Tommy, Zephyrus joined him in the passenger seat whilst Chorus and The Blade sat in the back, looking awfully cramped.
He held his hands close to the heater embedded in the car, the numbness and coldness of the rain quickly disappearing as warmth spread through his fingers. Once Tommy had regained feeling in his hands, he set his hands on the wheel and turned the keys in the ignition, glancing at Zephyrus, he asked, "Where to then?"
"Take us west way," Zephyrus said.
"I don't know my way out of south side," Tommy admitted.
"Turn right and drive until the roundabout, then take the first exit and you'll recognise where we are," The Blade directed. Tommy nodded in acknowledgement and stepped on the acceleration, the engine quietly revving as he swerved out of the alley way and followed the road that fed through the dense city. Tommy could tell that Zephyrus was clearly waiting for him to gain his bearings.
The radio hummed quietly in the background, fighting off complete silence. As the car sped along the road, traversing the city at ninety miles per hour, lights blurred past the car and raindrops swept across the window. Once the familiarity of their surroundings had sunk in and Tommy was evidently more comfortable, Zephyrus cleared his throat, "So, would you be interested in being a getaway driver?"
Tommy almost burst into barrels of laughter over the downright bluntness of the villain's words, but all he managed to do was simply splutter out in shock, "What?!"
"There's literally no other way to rephrase that," Chorus shrugged casually.
"Why would I ever do that?" He laughed.
"You're working on a minimum wage apprenticeship," The Blade began impassively, "And you steal and sell cars at the night market."
"Exactly, I have an apprenticeship. I have a steady, stable income," Tommy scoffed.
"If you're having to resort to illegal means to make money, well that doesn't sound very stable to me," Chorus commented.
"Wait, how did you know I work minimum wage?" Tommy asked, cautiously eyeing up The Blade in his mirror, "How did you know.. any of that?"
The Blade sneered, "Look at yourself."
Chorus drove his elbow into The Blade's ribs, shutting him up. Chorus turned to Tommy, "We do our research, besides-"
"What they mean to say," Zephyrus interjected, "Is that we're not expecting you to be our getaway driver for free. We're willing to pay you well."
"Are you seriously trying to employ me? As your getaway driver!?" Tommy asked, his grip tightening around the steering wheel. "You got me arrested, backed me into a corner and now you're trying to employ me?!" (Drag himmm😚😚😚)
The Blade casually nodded, "Pretty much."
"We owe it to you," Chorus began, "And that's a debt many people would want. The payment we gave you doesn't match the severity of the crimes we've dragged you into."
Tommy's jaw tightened but it wasn't too long before his anger diffused as, without much restraint, his mind subconsciously slipped into contemplation. It only took him a few seconds of careful consideration to come to the executive decision that he didn't have much choice. The night market, one of his biggest sources of income, had been shredded to ribbons after being discovered by Dream, Ignis and the rest of the authorities. Whispers had been exchanged between the criminals of the city. It was rumoured that the market was being relocated but it would take weeks, months even, for the market to be rebuilt. It would be ages before Tommy could sell a car and generate any form of money from the night market.
He had just lost his main source of income and his rent was right around the corner, Tommy had loans and debts to pay off and with this fine of five thousand pounds, even a fool could tell that the timing was poor. Those thoughts hadn't even occurred to Tommy before - he felt his chest tighten as a twinge of stress and anxiety snaged at him. He barely managed to reel himself in and prevent himself from spiralling.
"We know that you're more of a solo criminal," Chorus begun, sounding surprisingly compassionate, "And working for the most wanted supervillains isn't ideal, so-"
Tommy glanced into the mirror, cutting him off with a sneer, "Okay, we don't flatter yourself."
"Is that a yes to the offer?" Zephrus asked, sounding hopeful.
The blond nodded, a shaky smile tugging at his lips, "You had me at good pay."
Tommy knew it was a bad idea. He knew that he had repeatedly promised himself that he wouldn't get involved in The Syndicate's world of crime. But the three were right; Tommy was working a minimum wage job and whilst he adored Sam and his job, he wouldn't be able to pay off all his newfound debts. But he also adored his car 'business' and the rush of adrenaline and anticipation that could only be fulfilled by travelling at an inhumane speed. And if The Syndicate were offering a preposterous amount of money just to drive them around the city at a hundred miles per hour every now in exchange for a hefty fee, then Tommy could look past his previous encounters and accept this offer.
"Good," Zephyrus said, evidently chuffed with the answer which he had been seeking to hear, "In that case, pull over here."
"Why?" Tommy asked as he abruptly jolted the wheel to the side, pulling over to the side of the road and crashing into the curb as he smashed the brakes down. Tommy watched in confusion as all three villains swept off their seatbelts and flung open the car doors. Rolling down the window, Tommy yelled into the dark night, "Wait, where are you going?! There are still factors of this.. Agreement I want to discuss!"
As he looked past the three figures, only visible thanks to the flickering beams of the streetlights; Tommy squinted, managing to make out the words 'The National Essempi Vaults' which were engraved into a large, stone building which had the smallest and most grandeur details to the exterior architecture. It took only a second for it to click into place: they were robbing the vaults of all its ridiculously prized possessions.
Zephyrus nodded understandingly and hissed quietly under his breath, "Of course. Just wait there, we'll be right back."
The trio all spun on their heels in unison and dispersed into the night and if it wasn't for the implied subtleness of his surroundings and this operation, Tommy would've repeatedly bashed his head against the wheel until the airbag blew up in his face.
These people had just employed Tommy and hadn't even had the chance to lay down the rules and foundations of their alliance. A horrible voice in the back of his mind reminded Tommy that Zephyrus, The Blade and Chorus weren't good people. They were villains with sick and twisted intentions. They were simply capitalising on Tommy's talent.
Tommy wanted to call out to Zephyrus and confirm every single detail his mind could conjure up to put his anxiety at ease. Another part of Tommy wanted to drive away, pretend he had never gotten himself associated with The Syndicate and continue living his bland and stressful life as a mere engineer's apprentice. But Tommy knew he wouldn't be able to do that; he had made an agreement and he didn't even want to consider what would happen if he didn't comply with The Syndicate's expectations.
But while all of these new apprehensions had arisen, one notable anxiety had been eased; The Syndicate had promised Tommy money, the one thing which has always dictated and controlled his life. They had found his achilles heel and had essentially guaranteed that he'd never have to worry about his financial problems again.
Suddenly, a sharp, wailing alarm pierced the air. Angling his head, Tommy watched as the supervillains made a beeline back to the car, their arms comically overflowing with an array of bank accounts and jewels of all colours of the rainbow.
As Tommy watched with a look of both disbelief and awe struck across his face, all he could question is what the everloving fuck had he got himself into.
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A/n
YOUR BREESY WEESY AND IM JAPANESEY💀
HELP I CANT GET IT OUT MY HEAD
WAHHHHHHHHHHHHH😭😭